B2B Social Media Research: A Question Of Trust
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© The Marketing Practice 2011 1 B2B SOCIAL MEDIA: A QUESTION OF TRUST DECISION-MAKER RESEARCH FOCUS
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Transcript of B2B Social Media Research: A Question Of Trust
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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B2B SOCIAL MEDIA:A QUESTION OF TRUST
DECISION-MAKER RESEARCH FOCUS
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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About the research
• Conducted in the UK, in April 2011
• 100 senior managers and directors across public and private sectors, segmented by:
• Role (Line of business Vs IT)
• Organisation size (1000-5000, 5000-10000, 10000-20000 employees)
• Age (18-25, 26-40, 41-55,56+)
• This presentation focuses on the issue of trust and social media, the overall research headlines are available here: http://www.slideshare.net/paulreverett/b2b-social-media-research-into-its-role-in-the-ict-buying-process
• Or for a run-through of the full findings (over 20 different question areas) and analysis, please contact Paul Everett, [email protected]
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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5 headlines: Social media and the issue of trust
1. Just over half of senior decision-makers think it is important for vendors to
have a social media presence.
2. But over a fifth of them have been disappointed by or put off a supplier thanks
to information found in social media.
3. 43% say that customer recommendations and ratings found on social media
play an important role in their decision–making process
4. Nearly a third of decision-makers trust social media content produced by
suppliers, but around a quarter don’t.
5. 34% of non-IT decision-makers say that an uninvited approach through social
media would put them off.
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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Summary
• Social media represents a great opportunity for B2B marketers – and most buyers think it’s an important area for vendors to get involved. But like many other marketing channels, the wrong approach can do as much harm as good.
• Quality, not quantity of output is important. Social media or not, time-poor buyers aren’t impressed by ill-considered, misleading communications. Plan and prioritise to ensure that social media output is coherent and fits with a wider engagement strategy.
• Trust is a very valuable commodity – the most likely reason why a buyer will be put off using a supplier.
• When it comes to buying, potential customers listen to what your clients say online. Where practicable, harness the positive and have a strategy to respond to the negative.
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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1. HALF OF ALL BUYERS AGREE IT IS IMPORTANT FOR SUPPLIERS TO HAVE A SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE.
(BUT DON’T FORGET THE HALF THAT STILL DON’T.)
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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How important is it for suppliers to have a social media presence?
19%18%
20%
30%32%
28%
51%50%
52%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Total Director IT/Tech
Not Important Neither Important nor unimportant Important
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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2. OVER A FIFTH OF BUYERS HAVE BEEN DISAPPOINTED OR PUT OFF A SUPPLIER BY INFORMATION FOUND IN SOCIAL MEDIA
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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21 22 20
79 78 80
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Total Director Level Specifically IT/Tech
Yes No
Have you ever been disappointed or put off an existing or potential supplier by information found in a social media environment?
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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AND THIS WAS MOSTLY DOWN TO AN EROSION OF TRUST...
• “Information found was quite misleading”
• “There was no technical team to support my questions, waste of time”
• “The information provided was incorrect and misleading”
• “I found fake product information”
• “While purchasing software, found misleading information and wasn't
convinced about buying from the same supplier”
• “Comments regarding a printer company to not buy the products by a user”
• “No authorisation and the remarks I found were misleading”
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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3. 43% OF BUYERS SAY CUSTOMER COMMENTS ON SOCIAL MEDIA PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THEIR DECISION-MAKING PROCESS
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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How important are other customer recommendations and ratings found on social media to your decision-making process?
21
16
26
36
42
30
4342
44
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
Total Director Level Specifically IT/Tech
Not important Neither important nor unimportant Important
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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4. NEARLY A THIRD OF DECISION-MAKERS TRUST SUPPLIER CONTENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA, BUT AROUND A QUARTER DON’T.
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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How strongly do you trust social media that is connected to suppliers?
2324
22
4846
50
2930
28
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Total Director Level Specifically IT/Tech
Not strongly Neither Strongly
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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5. ONE IN FIVE IT BUYERS WOULD BE PUT OFF BY AN UNINVITED SOCIAL MEDIA APPROACH. OUTSIDE THE IT FUNCTION, THIS RISES TO OVER A THIRD.
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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Would potential or current suppliers be
disadvantaged if they tried to approach
you, without invitation, via social media of any sort?
27
34
20
73
66
80
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Total Director Level Specifically IT/Tech
Yes No
© The Marketing Practice 2011
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For a run-through of the full findings (over 20 different question areas and
variations by size of organisation/age/job function), and our resulting 90-
day social media action plan, please contact:
Paul Everett
Director of Marketing Strategy
